Parents ‘could take on debt’ to see children through university

Parents of university students risk falling into debt as a result of paying for their children to go through higher education, results from a new report indicate.

According to findings from a survey by Sainsbury’s Finance, 53 per cent of undergraduates are to be offered assistance by their families during their time at university, with two per cent of parents either having already taken out a loan or intending to do so in order to help meet costs.

Head of loans at Sainsbury’s Steven Baillie noted that further study is becoming more expensive and family contributions are increasingly needed to subsidise government funding.

“It’s important that parents who are thinking of alleviating their children’s financial burdens with a personal loan make sure that they shop around for the best deals,” he said.

Recent Halifax research revealed that young people are becoming concerned that parental funding could dry up as a result of the recession, with one in seven expressing worries that their families will not be able to provide them with money.

By Sarah Adie